Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James recently reached another milestone in his illustrious career, becoming the first player to appear in 23 different seasons.
James’ season debut was highly anticipated, given how strong L.A. came out of the gate to begin this season. Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves shouldered a considerable amount of the load, and it led to a 10-4 record before the 40-year-old took the court.
When James returned, he fit right in and showed that he can still play winning basketball in his 23rd season. Naturally though, people are wondering how much longer he will be able to do this.
With Doncic ready to embrace this franchise and lead them for the foreseeable future, it’s possible that this is LeBron’s final season.
A close friend and teammate of his, Kevin Love, believes James has at least one more after this one though, via Melissa Rohlin of Fox Sports:
“I don’t know how much longer [he’ll play] — whether it’s the end of this year [that he retires], I don’t think it will be,” Love told me. “But at the end of next year there’s a high likelihood that will be the case. I don’t want to make assumptions on what he’s thinking or what he’s feeling or how his family is feeling. But it’s coming sooner rather than later and he’s been pretty outspoken about that.”
As one of the greatest players to have ever lived, James deserves a retirement tour and he will likely want one. Once no announcement was made before this season, the expectation has been for him to play at least one more.
Seeing how the Lakers played 14 games without him, James identified areas where he could contribute, primarily with rebounding and as a defensive leader. If L.A. continues its strong play, James might see an opportunity to prolong his career and compete for more champions.
James has made it clear that he is chasing a fifth ring, so how this season ends could determine his future.
JJ Redick calls LeBron James ‘all good’ following season debut
For the first time in his long career, LeBron James missed the start of a season as he had to deal with sciatica on his right side. That is a tricky injury to maneuver and may flare up at any time, but head coach JJ Redick said James was ‘all good’ following his season debut.
That is a step in the right direction for the star to ramp up into game shape, which will understandably take some time.
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